Catch a Ride with ownerIQ at Interbike – the Bicycle Industry’s Ultimate Event

Three days, September 16-18, and a lot – a lot – of bikes. Last week, ownerIQ attended the 2015 Interbike event, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada. The event welcomes 750 companies and more than 1,200 brands, Interbike is a one stop opportunity to interact with bicycle industry experts. ownerIQ’s team looked forward to learning more about the industry’s emerging trends and future happenings – we didn’t leave disappointed.

The event was more of an experience than your typical showcase, connecting brands, retailers, media and more to support one another in the business of cycling. As ownerIQ solidifies its presence in the marketplace, the team was excited to check out the industry’s latest products and services, including one of ownerIQ’s recent brand partners: Saris Cycling Group (SCG).

Saris is a highly recognizable leader in the space, and the manufacturer of Saris bike racks, CycleOps bike trainers and PowerTap cycling power meters. The company has launched a retail activation program with ownerIQ in August of this year, looking to reach local in-market shoppers and driving sell-through of SCG products at retail. Using ownerIQ’s platform, retailers of SCG products are reaching relevant consumers and driving them to their brick and mortar stores. In today’s day in age, uptick of purchases at retail is key – despite the growing influence of online shopping, 83% of shoppers still prefer to purchase at retail – an especially important and unwavering statistic in an industry where shopping at retail is in the lifeblood of the culture. You can read more about the partnership here. ownerIQ’s biking brand portfolio now intelligently expands to consist of the most pervasive brand names in the bicycle industry, including Saris, Kryptonite, Clearly Bikes, Powertap, and many more.

At the summit, team ownerIQ also had the pleasure of meeting with at least 50 companies, as well as around 70 brands representing those companies. Our conversations led to some pretty interesting and enlightening takeaways, reinforcing our stance on the need for collaboration between brands and retailers. As a quick recap, some of the leading challenges the industry faces today – perhaps now more than ever – is the trend toward the perceived need for selling more bikes and accessories online. In other words, many retailers, especially the smaller independent brick-and-mortar bike dealers (IBDs), fear that the brands they carry are investing more and more resources into selling directly through their own e-commerce channels, thereby bypassing the IBDs. However, because most bicycle enthusiasts prefer the experience of shopping at retail (the fit and support of a bike are as important as the look itself), the dichotomy of the situation is causing confusion, adding to the complexity of industry challenges.

Enter ownerIQ’s solution for immediately connecting retailers and brands, followed by that ubiquitous “aha!” moment we continued to hear from most we spoke with at the summit.

ownerIQ’s program is the perfect solution for benefitting both brands and IBDs, allowing IBDs to sell true to their roots by connecting to in-market and highly interested consumers (those who have already browsed the sites of the product brands a given IBD sells). Likewise, ownerIQ’s platform enables the brand to act as the retailer’s best sales person (or leading support tool), increasing retailer sell-through of given sought-after brands. It’s a win win.

Extra! Extra!
There’s more Qtastic news…Leveraging its success in the bicycle industry, ownerIQ just partnered with Argon18! A truly high-end racing brand, Argon18 is well-known in the industry for its exceptional reputation and consistent performance. Stay tuned for more on this exciting announcement and don’t forget to catch us at IBD Summit, taking place January 12-14, 2016 in Tempe, Arizona.